Some worldwide college students in China have taken to social media platform RedNote (Xiaohongshu) to complain about being excluded from acquiring free instructional accounts for Quark AI, an LLM device broadly utilized by their Chinese language college classmates. Utilizing the hashtag #WeStudyInChina, these college students have additionally arrange a web-based “message wall” to foyer for inclusion within the common AI device.
Chinese language on-line reactions to the scholars’ pleas ranged from sympathy to amusement, Schadenfreude to nationwide delight. Some commenters highlighted the perceived privileges loved by alternate college students in China, whereas others pointed to the clamor for Quark AI as an indication that Chinese language AI instruments have lastly turn into leading edge. Others famous the similarities between these latest “Quark AI refugees” and the hundreds of thousands of so-called “TikTok refugees” who joined RedNote earlier this 12 months when a U.S. ban on TikTok appeared imminent. (After U.S.-China bilateral commerce talks in Spain this weekend, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the 2 nations had reached a framework deal to divest TikTok’s possession from Chinese language mum or dad firm Bytedance.)
In a latest WeChat article titled “As Worldwide College students in China Are Decreased to ‘Quark AI Refugees,’ Ought to We Gloat, or Really feel Proud?” blogger Xiang Dongliang discusses numerous facets of the controversy, together with China’s instructional subsidies for international college students, on-campus segregation of Chinese language and worldwide college students, and the rise of xenophobic attitudes in Chinese language society. Ultimately, Xiang means that neither smug nationalism nor petty Schadenfreude is an applicable response to the travails of alternate college students in China:
I got here throughout this significantly fascinating trending matter: “Quark AI has forgotten us!”
Humorously tearful posts from RedNote account Leo说中文 (“Leo speaks Chinese language”) characteristic the hashtags #QuarkHasForgottenUs and #WeStudyInChina. The Chinese language textual content at backside proper reads: “Can British individuals residing in China get it, too?! Harry from the U.Ok. additionally desires to strive a Quark AI membership. My Chinese language mates say it’s nice! And the scanning characteristic can be actually helpful!”
A publish in Chinese language and French contains the next plea: “Quark, how will you deal with me like this? My Chinese language classmates can get free membership by the ‘Training Plan,’ however I can’t, as a result of I don’t have a CHSI (China Larger Training Scholar Data Community) account. We take the identical lessons, the identical checks, and even grouse about the identical homework! Please present some like to us worldwide college students, too.”
A gaggle of international college students learning in China posted complaints on RedNote (Xiaohongshu), saying that Quark AI, which Chinese language college college students use, discriminates in opposition to worldwide college students. All Chinese language college college students qualify at no cost Quark “SVIP” membership, however worldwide college students attending the identical universities can solely stand by helplessly as they’re “left behind” by Quark.
A publish in Chinese language and Arabic encompasses a Sponge Bob Squarepants meme (Left: “Me” / Proper: “Chinese language individuals with Quark AI memberships”) and the Chinese language phrase “Who can perceive the plight of alternate college students?” The Arabic textual content at backside describes the scholar’s pleasure about returning to Shanghai for the brand new semester and assembly new classmates and new challenges, however mentions that solely Chinese language college students qualify at no cost Quark AI entry underneath the “Training Plan.”
One other worldwide scholar bemoans being “disregarded” of Quark AI entry.
A few of these alternate college students even created a devoted on-line message wall, as is ordinary on the abroad web. Known as “We Research in China,” the web site permits worldwide college students in China to voice their considerations and enchantment to Quark AI for equal therapy and entry to membership advantages.
A screenshot of the “We Research in China” message wall explains its mission of lobbying Quark AI to broaden free membership entry to worldwide college students learning in China, and invitations college students to go away feedback or share the web site URL with others.
This situation is harking back to the “TikTok refugees” who flocked to RedNote when TikTok was [in danger of being] shut down within the U.S. Each instances concerned foreigners who wished to make use of Chinese language web providers however have been unable to take action.
This may occasionally appear a minor matter, but it surely has extraordinary significance. It’s the primary time that I can recall the worldwide scholar group in China ever collectively talking out on this manner.
On the spectacle of international college students extolling the virtues of Chinese language AI instruments and even “begging” for entry to them, Chinese language netizens responded with delight, filling [social-media] remark sections with expressions of nationwide delight and Schadenfreude.
This could come as no shock. Chinese language society has lengthy harbored resentment over the preferential therapy afforded to worldwide college students. Now that we’re seeing worldwide college students being deprived and discriminated in opposition to, is it any marvel that some individuals are exulting, taking the chance to vent their frustrations?
A portion of a commentary from the nationalistically inclined on-line media outlet Guancha.
Prime: Whereas this outcry by worldwide college students might appear like a “protest,” it’s extra like a refrain of inadvertent recognition: China’s AI apps and providers have gotten so good that foreigners are turning envious!
Backside: Guancha headline: “Why are international college students up in arms about Quark AI? As a result of what’s ‘premium tier’ abroad is simply ‘normal difficulty’ in China.”
Guancha, which represents this sort of considering, revealed a triumphalist op-ed that gleefully proclaimed: “What’s ‘premium tier’ abroad is simply ‘normal difficulty’ in China.”
Sure, China’s AI has certainly made progress, and [domestic] AI instruments are performing fairly properly in numerous purposes and daily-life situations. In any case, the “utility layer” has all the time been the Chinese language web’s sturdy go well with.
Nevertheless, the truth that Quark AI excluded worldwide college students from its membership giveaway reveals, but once more, a longstanding downside in Chinese language society: huge sums of cash are being spent to draw and prepare worldwide college students, however not often does this funding obtain any concrete outcomes.
Statistics present that as of 2025, there have been over 500,000 worldwide college students in China.
Many individuals are underneath the impression that African college students make up the most important proportion of alternate college students in China, however actually, a bigger proportion are from different Asian international locations comparable to Pakistan (comprehensible), South Korea (whose educational competitors is even fiercer than China’s), and Thailand (a lot of whom are ethnic Chinese language). Once I was an undergraduate, there have been a number of Vietnamese college students at my faculty, however they didn’t stand out a lot on account of their look.
Regardless of the various a whole lot of 1000’s of worldwide college students in China, as a bunch, they exhibit little or no “presence” in Chinese language society. Even after they sometimes make the information on account of a unfavourable incident, their voices are not often heard—it’s largely Chinese language netizens arguing amongst themselves.
On one hand, Chinese language universities actively promote a form of “tender segregation” by offering separate dorms, cafeterias, and even particular lessons solely for worldwide college students. As such, there isn’t a lot on-campus interplay between worldwide and Chinese language college students. However, as a result of worldwide college students have few alternatives to stay in China and work after commencement, they lack the motivation to completely combine into Chinese language society: they’re preoccupied with getting their levels and shifting on.
The outcomes are counterproductive: whereas China has lengthy supplied beneficiant subsidies to help and prepare alternate college students, the paucity of cultural alternate and social integration signifies that China is neither importing abroad expertise nor exporting cultural affect (as soon as these college students return to their house international locations after finishing their research).
Given these missed alternatives on each ends, isn’t our funding simply going to waste?
And whereas Quark AI’s exclusion of worldwide college students from the advantages of free membership may look like a choice by a single firm, it displays the collective mentality of our complete society.
After all, this represents however a miniscule slice of the day-to-day existence of worldwide college students in China. The one cause it grew to become a trending matter is as a result of it provides such a dramatic examine in contrasts.
The query actually worthy of our consideration is that this: What perspective ought to Chinese language society undertake towards worldwide college students and different foreigners who come to China?
A decade in the past, Chinese language society’s perspective towards foreigners was predominantly respectful and pleasant. In the present day, that perspective has shifted to a mixture of “wanting as much as” and “wanting down on” foreigners. Disrespect and contempt appear to be within the ascendant, and hostile rhetoric has turn into commonplace. None of those, in brief, are wholesome attitudes.
When abroad customers first started flocking to RedNote, the Chinese language public’s considerations about an “inflow of foreigners” was on full show. However now, what number of of these abroad accounts are even nonetheless on RedNote?
Returning to this text’s title, the floor phenomenon is that Quark AI “forgot” about worldwide college students, however the underlying essence is that Chinese language society has by no means seen worldwide college students or foreigners as equals.
My constructive suggestion is to not look as much as them, nor to look down on them, both.
Till we will view foreigners as equals and settle for worldwide college students into our colleges and society with an open and egalitarian mindset, we won’t be actually composed or assured. [Chinese]
